The WNBA brass have come into Minneapolis this week for league meetings. Tonight at the Target Center they held a small event for local businessfolks and season ticket holders. Donna O, Renee Brown, Jamin Dershowitz, and others were there. I wasn't invited, but security was lax.

A few interesting points:

1. The league and the players are already in negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement. (The current CBA expires in a couple weeks, when the league will have to decide whether to exercise its one-year renewal option.) In all likelihood, they won't get a deal done before the impending option deadline, but even after that, they will continue negotiating with the goal of reaching a new deal before the 2007 season starts.

2. Donna talked a lot about corporate sponsorships. Her pitch, which strikes me as pretty convincing, is that the WNBA is a particularly effective (and cost-effective) marketing partner, for two big reasons: (1) WNBA fans are predominantly women, and women make most household purchasing decisions, and (2) WNBA fans are committed to the league, and they will go out of their way to support league sponsors.

As a case study, she discussed Craisins. Craisins had market-by-market promotions, so it was able to measure the effect on sales in each market. It found that marketing through the WNBA brought better returns than any of its other campaigns.

3. Based on a few hints dropped here and there around the room, it sounds like the Lynx will be announcing their coaching hire soon.

(P.s., Craisins are really good. On their own, in salads, in stuffing, whatever.)